I want to address the so-called “law of attraction,” as it often seems to pop up in different shapes and forms.

People don’t always talk about the law of attraction but they might say things like: it is important to think positive, “we attract what we are” or “if you focus on something negative, you give it energy.”

All of these build on the same or a similar principle as the law of attraction. I am not saying that it is all untrue but let’s just talk about the law of attraction for now.

A few years a famous and oft-mentioned book The Secret came along. A friend introduced it to me and I both read the book and watched the DVD. It all seemed exciting, and so easy. Imagine that you could only visualize something and you would get it!

I realized almost straight away, though, that it couldn’t be quite that easy since I had been thinking about, visualizing and looking at pictures of my ex-boyfriend for years without getting him back. And lets face it, if it really was that easy we’d have loads of millionaires dating Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie copies by now!

Then of course there were a lot of small rules, small things, that people were doing wrong that made all the difference between succeeding and failing at the law of attraction. For example you had to visualize in the present, not in the future, since if you visualized in the future it would also always be in the future.

I never fully tried to attract my dreams through the “magic” law of attraction. There were a number of reasons for that. But mostly because I simply don’t believe in it. Let me explain why.

First, I know that not everyone believes in karma but I do and the law of attraction does not take karma in to consideration at all. I would like to quote David Icke when he said:

“I don’t care if you wallpaper your whole house with pictures of Ferraris, if it’s not part of your life path to have a Ferrari you wont have one.”

I fully, 100 percent, agree with this.

Second, this law of attraction seems to be pushing people further in to duality (by creating stronger wants and cravings for material objects and material success) rather than out of it and in most, if not all, eastern philosophies and religions, everyone eventually has to let go of the dualities.

As soon as we start to want for certain things, we are encouraging the dualistic nature within ourselves and thereby increasing suffering.

In the realm of non-duality, married isn’t better than single, rich isn’t better than poor, famous isn’t better than unknown and so on, hence quite obviously for those with a non-dualistic mind frame, the law of attraction is of no use and no interest.

Of course, few of us are completely non-dualistic at all times but the more we are, the less this law will appeal to us and I believe that by not engaging in trying to apply such “laws” we will encourage our evolution toward non-duality.

I suppose it would be a different story if it was only being used by people who were trying to attract a situation where they could be of most benefit to other beings. As the Buddhist saying goes, “all happiness in the world comes from trying to make other people happy.” But to be honest I think the people using it for this purpose are in a minority.

Maybe I’m being too skeptical, but I think people mostly use it to try to gain money, partners, dream jobs, dream houses etc. (If I am proven wrong here, I’d be happy!)

Third, returning to the topic of why the law of attraction does or doesn’t work: I have heard said that the reason it does not work for some (or many?) people is that it is not enough for your conscious mind to believe that you shall have (or already have) whatever it is you are attempting to get, it is your unconscious mind that has to believe it.

I don’t know if this is true but I am open to the possibility that it is.

It actually seems quite reasonable—karma is of course still unconsidered here but apart from that.) However, this would put things in a different light. Whilst visualizing, focusing or believing with your conscious mind might not be that difficult, actually inflicting change on your unconscious mind most definitely is!

The only way I know of is by good old fashioned meditation and lots of patience. Then, the unconscious mind can slowly slowly start to transform.

But it will (at least hopefully) not transform in the way that it will give you a Ferrari or a Brad Pitt look-a-like, it will transform in the way that you will not want it. It will transform in a way that will allow you to see these things for the transient illusions that they really are and it will give you the deep and profound insight that true lasting happiness cannot be found in such objects.

So, I believe that after spending lots of time and energy being caught up in a romantic affair with the beautiful illusion of the magical law of attraction, we will eventually return to the reality that there are no short cuts, no magic tricks and no secret methods to achieve our goals or bypass our karma.

If this law really worked it would have been discovered a long time ago….not a few years ago.

However, I do believe that there is a shall we say “magic” tool. It has been around for a long time and I have mentioned it many times already—it is called non-duality and it is reached through genuine spiritual practice and meditation.

It will take a long time and a lot of hard work but I am personally completely convinced that it will work and that it will be worth it.

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Editor: Catherine Monkman

Photo: Marissa Bracke/Flickr